explain xkcd:Editor FAQ

This FAQ is a short description about editing pages at the explain xkcd wiki. If you have any further questions, do not hesitate to ask them in the Community portal or enter them into this FAQ's talk page. For general questions about wikitext, please read first the MediaWiki help pages about Editing pages or look at the full overview here: Help Contents. You also can use your preferred search engine, for example "MediaWiki tables" will show you many useful sites about editing tables. Please always use the Preview button to verify your edit before finally pressing the Save button.

This FAQ focuses only on topics specific to the explain xkcd wiki. You can jump to a specific question, or read them in order. For anything not covered on this page, the English Wikipedia's policies and guidelines apply.

What is the general layout of a comic explanation?

The layout and order are structured as:

• Comic image and title text
• Explanation
  • Any eventual subsection(s)
• Transcript
• Trivia (optional)
• Discussion (embedded discussion page)
• Categories

In general, you don't have to care about this because the pages are generated by a bot nearly immediately after a new comic is released. If the bot fails, please follow exactly the instructions here to create the comic page.

What should I include in the explanation?

Everything is welcome as long as it explains the content of the comic. Everybody can edit here and when others disagree about your contributions they may change it. If the comic references a scientific concept, a brief description and a link to its Wikipedia page for further information should be given (see how to do this here). The explanation should also explain the title text of the comic, usually at the bottom.

On large explanations, it can be handy to divide it into subsections. In this case, each header is written like this: ===Sub header===. But in most cases, the simple semicolon method described in § Tables are so cool! Can I use them everywhere? is sufficient.

What is the format of the transcript section?

The transcript should describe the content of the comic in a compact manner (think about describing the comic to a visually impaired person, or to someone on the phone). Descriptions of the scene are enclosed inside square brackets to distinguish them from written words, which are cited as-is. Every line begins with an indent (a simple :  at the beginning) and every panel of the comic is separated by a blank line. For example, here is the transcript of comic 3270: Toasting Marshmallows:

== Transcript ==
: [A single panel showing Cueball and Megan sitting on the ground. Between them is a small fire built of what appears to be a burning circuit board. Both are holding long sticks with marshmallows on the end, roasting them over the flames.]
: Cueball: At least we finally determined the board's actual thermal limit.
: Megan: Yeah. You know, we probably shouldn't eat these.

: [Caption below the comic:]
: Engineering tip: Keep sticks and marshmallows around to make failures look intentional.

The transcript must not contain any links nor rich math markup, but it may contain simple formatting such as italic and bold if it appears in the comic. Tables should generally be avoided; see § Tables are so cool! Can I use them everywhere?. The title text is not included in the transcript, as it is already available below the comic image.

What belongs in the trivia section?

As implied by the section name, it's just trivia, consisting of unimportant odds-and-ends related to the comic. Since this wiki focuses on explaining this section is not part of the default layout. If a word has been misspelled in the comic or title text, or the image was originally broken at xkcd and re-uploaded... basically, the things that don't belong in the explanation but should still be mentioned should be written in the trivia section. To learn how to create a trivia section when the comic image is edited, see § Randall updated a comic, how do I upload the new image here?.

How do I enter links to other pages?

The three most-used options to link to another page are:

1. an internal link like [[Cueball]] which results in: Cueball
2. a link to the English Wikipedia should be formatted like this: {{w|Page}} links to the Wikipedia article called "Page" (is shown like this: Page), and {{w|Page|this article}} links to the same article but is shown like this: this article
3. an external link with text: [https://example.com Example Homepage] links to https://example.com and everything after the first space is shown: Example Homepage

External links can also be done in other two ways:

• Just write the URL with no formatting and it will be shown like this: http://www.example.com (Only use this if the website address is relevant to the reader.)
• Put it into single brackets: [http://www.example.com] and it will be shown like this: [1] (please avoid this)

A few extra tips for the {{w|...}} template used to link to a Wikipedia article:

• It automatically capitalises the first letter of the article title, so {{w|article}} and {{w|Article}} both link to the same page.
• You don't need to worry about spaces or other characters in the article title; just write the title exactly as it appears on Wikipedia, such as {{w|Whitespace (programming language)}}.
• You can link to a specific section of a Wikipedia article by adding a # followed by the section name, for example {{w|Page#Section|display text}}.
• If you need to link to a plural form of a word whose article title is singular, you can add the ending outside the template instead of writing it out twice, for example {{w|Ox}}en instead of {{w|Ox|Oxen}}.

How do I add references?

You don't. It is preferable to link the source you want to cite in the sentence that needs sourcing itself. To do that, see point #3 in the section above.

How do I link to a what if? article?

what if? is Randall Munroe's blog and book series. To link to one of the blog articles or a book chapter, you should always use the {{what if}} template. It links to the matching row of the what if? articles index, where every official what if? blog article, book chapter, and YouTube video are collected and explained. In the examples, the first part is the identifier of the row you want to reach, while the second part is the text that readers see. There are several kinds of identifiers:

• To link to an article from the blog, use the article number. For example, use ''{{what if|158|Hot Banana}}'' to link to the 158^th blog article, which results in: Hot Banana. This is the shortest and most common option, but it only works for articles that were published on the blog.

• To link to a chapter of one of the books, use the book number and the chapter number separated by a hyphen. {{''what if|2-63|Walking on the Sun}}'' links to the 63^rd chapter of the 2^nd book and results in: Walking on the Sun. The book numbers are 1- for What If? (the original book), 2- for What If? 2, and 3- for What If? 10th Anniversary Edition, whose only new chapter is Bonus Chapter (''{{what if|3-70|Bonus Chapter}}''). If the article is also on the blog, either form works.

• There are two ways to link to an official what if? YouTube video. This is the best option when an article has more than one video and you want to reference a specific one:
  • For full-length horizontal videos, use the number from the "YouTube" column with a Y before it. {{what if|Y34|the ''Keyboard Power'' video}} links to the 34^th video in that column, the Keyboard Power video.
  • For short vertical videos, do the same but with the number from the "YT Shorts" column and an S before it. {{what if|S16|video on swimming in spent nuclear pools}} links to the 16^th short and results in: video on swimming in spent nuclear pools. Long videos and shorts are numbered separately, so Y16 and S16 are different videos.

• You can also simply use the article title with the correct capitalisation. ''{{what if|Pigeon Chair|Pigeon Chair}}'' results in: Pigeon Chair. This suits articles that exist only in a book.

• To link to a single question of a grouped article, there are two methods:
  • Use the name of the reader who asked it. {{what if|Henry M.|last question of ''Weird & Worrying #2''}} results in: last question of Weird & Worrying #2. This anchor is more precise for multiple-question articles such as Short Answers sections, because it takes readers to the specific question. It cannot be used for anonymous readers: for that, use the method below:
  • Use the full question as written in the index. {{what if|Could life evolve in a constantly running microwave?|first question of ''Short Answers #5''}} results in: first question of Short Answers #5. It is the only option for anonymous readers, but it is longer and might break in the future.

• In all of the options above, leaving out the displayed text also works (e.g., {{what if|130}} results in what if? 130), but it does not show the title, so it is best to always add some displayed text. It usually matches the name of the article itself, but it can also be another wording if it fits your sentence better.
• You should use a simpler method when linking to a what if? article from one of these pages: what if? (blog), What If? (book), What If? 2, and What If? 10th Anniversary Edition. Because those four pages already embed the index, avoid using the {{what if}} template and instead use a normal anchor wikilink to keep the reader on the same page. To do this, place [[# and then any of the identifiers above, such as ''[[#2-63|Tire Rubber]]'' which results in: Tire Rubber (this link will not work outside the four pages).

When you mention an article in a sentence, the words what if? should link to the blog page or the specific book page, and the title should be in italics. You can copy these and replace the coloured parts:

• See the ''[[what if? (blog)|what if?]]'' article ''{{what if|28|Steak Drop}}''. results in: See the what if? article Steak Drop.
• See the chapter ''{{what if|2-38|Eat a Cloud}}'' in ''[[What If? 2]]''. results in: See the chapter Eat a Cloud in What If? 2.

Tables are so cool! Can I use them everywhere?

In the transcript section, tables should never be used as they are less accessible to users of screen readers. Even when there is a table in the comic image, it needs to be described using text.

In the explanation, tables only make sense when the content is compact. When a single row contains more than a small item like a number, a small phrase, or something similar, a table isn't the proper layout because it's hard to read. Instead, it should be written in floating text chapters with distinct headers above (see next section below.)

Instead of using a two- or three-column table, such as "Number - Sentence from comic - Explanation", it is usually better to use a description list. Place a semicolon (;) at the beginning of the sentence to be explained and a colon (:) at the beginning of each paragraph of the explanation, like this (from 1987: Python Environment):

; 1. Anaconda Python

: Anaconda is a Python distribution for data science and machine learning related applications.

: A second paragraph for the explanation.

Wikipedia's Manual of Style describes it best:

Often a list is best left as a list. Before reformatting a list into table form, consider whether the information will be more clearly conveyed by virtue of having rows and columns. If so, then a table is probably a good choice. If there is no obvious benefit to having rows and columns, then a table is probably not the best choice.

How do I behave on the discussion page?

Everybody can add here any thoughts about the comic and more. Consider it as the comments section of a blog, because that's how it started, just more flexible. Follow the common netiquette and don't be rude. Unless you are replying to a previous comment, in which you should add a colon before your comment, you should add comments at the bottom. Every comment has to be signed, but this is done automatically on most discussions; if you are editing the page's source directly, you can do it manually by ending your comment with ~~~~ or just click the sign button at the top of the editor.

Do not remove comments that are not vandalism, spamvertising, or contain illegal content. While we may adjust the formatting of what others have written, we don't remove mere 'nonsense', which could potentially include many inside jokes. If they're signed, then let old comments stay unless there's very good reasons for removing them. If they're not properly signed, sign them using {{unsigned}} or {{unsigned ip}}. Comic discussion pages are expected to be less polished than the main explanation; while the latter can be mercilessly rephrased or rewritten, the chatter about the comic and its topics should be considered 'as is' and remain directly attributed to the various contributors responsible.

If you find that a discussion page is being abused, you can raise the issue at the Admin requests portal.

Should I add headings to talk page comments?

On the talk pages of explanations, use headings very sparingly. A talk page works best as a flat, chronological set of comments, and a == Header == can bleed into the explanation page's table of contents. Only add a heading when the discussion is genuinely split into a few long and clearly distinct topics, such as several large and unrelated debates running on the same page.

For anything shorter than that, use a semicolon-prefixed line instead, such as ; Header. This gives the comment a similar visual prominence without the unwanted side effects of a real header. If you come across an existing == Header == that isn't warranted, either convert it to a semicolon line or fold it into the first sentence of the comment, whichever keeps the page tidy. Don't completely remove headers wholesale, unless the original intent of the commenter is preserved.

Why can't I create my user page and upload images?

To prevent bots from posting spam on their user pages, only registered users with a few edits can create pages or upload images. After the registration, you have to wait at least seven days and must have done a very small number of edits. Then, you will be able to create pages, such as your user page, and upload images at will. Alternatively, you can request that someone create it for you at the Miscellaneous Community portal, along with a brief one-sentence explanation.

What does the incomplete tag mean?

There are two templates to indicate that an explanation or the transcript needs further rework, {{incomplete}} and {{incomplete transcript}}. Just enter {{incomplete|YOUR REASON}} or respectively {{incomplete transcript|YOUR REASON}} and don't forget to enter a proper reason to replace the filler text.

Once the issues stated in the tag have been completely dealt with, you can remove the tag from the page.

When I see "^{[citation needed]}", does it mean the content needs citations?

No, that notice has a different meaning here than on Wikipedia. That notice is just a joke that originated on Randall's what if? blog. In fact, {{Citation needed}} simply links to a comic from 2007. It looks like this:^{[citation needed]}. This template should only be placed after an obviously true sentence with a deeper sense of humor and should not be overused. For statements that are unsourced and require actual reliable citations (such as sentences like "Randall has said he regrets making this comic."), use the {{Actual citation needed}} template instead. It looks like this:^{[actual citation needed]}. When you see it, it means the content is unsourced and unreliable, like on Wikipedia. For example, an instance of ^{[citation needed]} may look like this:

The sky is blue.^{[citation needed]}

And an instance of ^{[actual citation needed]} may look like this:

Randall has stated that he now regrets making this comic.^{[actual citation needed]}

How can I update or add new comics and images?

How do I add an image in the explanation?

This wiki isn't a picture book. Use this feature only sparingly and reduce the size as much as possible. An example can be seen here: 1400: D.B. Cooper. The syntax in this case is [[File:DBCooper.jpg|thumb|150px|Cooper]] and the picture is taken from Commons, the main source for Wikipedia images. The full syntax can be found at MediaWiki.

You also can upload pictures directly to this wiki by clicking the Upload file link on the left-hand toolbar. Do not upload copyrighted images or they will be deleted. If a picture is available at Commons, there is no need to upload it here; it can be linked normally.

Randall updated a comic, how do I upload the new image here?

Sometimes the original comic found at xkcd.com contains typos or other errors. In these cases, Randall often updates them after they are published, almost always to fix unintentional errors or appease fan complaints. When the mistake has been fixed and the updated image is live on xkcd.com, follow these steps:

1. The comic picture here should also be updated. Save the picture from xkcd.com to your local PC, but be careful, there are two versions available. Here, we only use the larger version comic_name_2x.png and not the smaller one comic_name.png. So, go to xkcd.com, click the link under the comic, and then change https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/picture.png to https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/picture_2x.png in the address bar of your browser. To update it here, just navigate to the comic's explanation page (click here to go to the newest comic's explanation), click on the comic image, and then click "Upload a new version of this file", below the file history. Please be patient, you won't see your upload immediately because it still comes from the cache at the server. If you see your upload in the file history, even if it's not the one you uploaded, it means it worked. Wait a few minutes for the newer image to appear.
2. Since the comic was changed, you also need to create a Trivia section (if it doesn't already exist) to explain the change to our readers. Go to the same file history mentioned above by clicking the image from the explanation page. In the "File history" section, click the original image (below the one you uploaded), right-click it, and choose "Copy link to image" on your browser's popup menu. Now, go back to the explanation and add the following to create the Trivia section, replacing "LINK TO ORIGINAL IMAGE" with the link you just copied. Place it above the {{comic discussion}} template but below the transcript:

   == Trivia ==
   
   In the ['''LINK TO ORIGINAL COMIC''' original version of the comic], ...explain what changed.
   

   For example, in 3284: Geology Building, the trivia section says:

   ==Trivia==
   In the ['''https://www.explainxkcd.com/w/images/archive/6/6f/20260815004534%21geology_building_2x.png''' original version of the comic], the caption originally said "free reign", which is a common misspelling for the correct phrase, "free rein". This mistake was later fixed.
   

3. Finally, add the comic to Category:Comics edited after their publication by adding this to the very end of the page:

   [[Category:Comics edited after their publication]]
   

How do I update an old comic page to use the larger image?

For a while, the bots responsible for creating new comic explanations (DgbrtBOT and TheusafBOT) only uploaded the standard size of each comic image, comic_name.png. The bot was later updated to also upload the larger comic_name_2x.png version and to use that one on the comic's explanation page instead, restricting its displayed size back to the original dimensions with the |imagesize= and |noexpand=yes parameters of the {{comic}} template. Because of this change, many of the older comics, particularly the ones in the range between 1000 and 2000, still use the smaller, non-2x version of the image. However, early comics do not have a 2x version.

There is no obligation to go back and convert these older pages, but it is a welcome change. To update an older page to use the larger 2x version, follow these steps:

1. Open the explanation page of the comic you want to update, and start editing its source.
2. Copy the following text somewhere; you will use it in step 6:

   _2x.png
    | imagesize = WIDTHxHEIGHT px
    | noexpand  = true
   

3. On the explanation page, middle click (or otherwise open in a new tab) two links: the comic's publishing date, which takes you to the original comic on xkcd.com, and the comic image itself, which takes you to that file's page on the explain xkcd wiki.
4. On the xkcd.com tab, right click the comic image and choose "Save image as..." to save it to your device.
5. On this wiki's file page tab, note down the width and height, in pixels, shown immeditely below the image.
6. Back in the edit window from step 1, find the existing .png text in the comic image's file name and replace it with the text you copied in step 2. Replace WIDTH and HEIGHT with the values you noted in step 5, keeping the lowercase letter x between them rather than the multiplication sign used on the file page.
7. Save the page. The image will now show as a red link, since the 2x file does not exist yet: now we need to upload it:
8. Click the red link, then click "Upload file" and pick the file you saved in step 4.

Once this is done, the red link may stick around for a few days even after the upload succeeds, since your browser can still be showing a cached version of the page. This is normal and should resolve itself within a few days. To verify whether you did it correctly, you can try opening the same explanation on an Incognito window of your browser to see if the larger image shows up correctly.

How do I insert/make a template?

To insert a template

Templates are quick shortcuts to insert commonly used things. While templates can be used in both userspace pages and explanations, some templates should be kept to a certain type of page.

To insert a template, insert {{ExampleTemplate}} where you wish to use the template. This displays the content of the template rather than a link to the page. If you wish to link to a template's page rather than use the template, typing [[Template:ExampleTemplate]] will link to the template's page. For further guidance on how to use templates, as well as how to create one, see the Template Tutorial.

To make a template

Type {{YourTemplateName}} (but substituting your own name) on whatever page you want your template on. You should see a red line that looks something like Template:YourTemplateName that is (unlike here) a link. Click it.

Add the content of your template by typing it in wikitext. If you want to use a specific image, make sure to upload it first before linking to it in the template. After this, add content to the page that should not be included in the template. This can be done with the noinclude and /noinclude commands. Now that you've added the content of your template, it's time to use it! Use it in a page by typing {{YourTemplateName}} on whatever page you want to use it on. Make sure to not use it on comic pages or comic discussion pages.

What is the general layout of an xkcd character page?

When creating a new character page, it's easier to just copy and paste the contents of an existing character page, such as Megan or Jill, and change the information. The layout and order are structured as:

• {{Infobox character}} template with an image of the character, caption, and first appearance.
• Brief description.
• Noting the different names given to the character in different comics under the "Name" section.
• Characteristics of the character under the "Characteristics" section, including cameos of the character under a proper name and different personalities
• Adding the Characters category.

The bot failed. How do I manually create the newest explanation?

New explanations on this wiki are automatically created by User:TheusafBOT. If the new explanation has not been created yet, wait a few hours for the bot to catch up. The source code of the bot can be found at: https://github.com/theusaf/explainXKCDBot.

If a long time has passed since the comic was released, make sure the bot really failed. Check if anyone has reported a similar problem at explain xkcd:Community portal/Technical. You can contact the bot operator User:Theusaf on their talk page or mention them in the explain xkcd:Discord (same username).

If you decide to create the explanation yourself, buckle up! Follow these instructions in the written order:

1. Go to xkcd.com, right-click on the comic image, and choose "Save image as..." to download it to your device.
2. Now come back to this wiki and add the proper entry at the top of the List of all comics, then save the page.
3. The new row you added will have a red link for the PNG image. Click it and upload the picture you downloaded earlier.
4. Now go back to the same list and click the "(create)" link in the second column. You need to add the {{comic}} template with the correct parameters, which can be found in its documentation. Then, paste the following code below the template, and save the page:

   ==Explanation==
   {{incomplete|This page was created recently. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
   
   ==Transcript==
   {{incomplete transcript|Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
   
   {{comic discussion}}<noinclude>
   

5. Create the redirects for the number and the name of the comic. For example, 1864 and City Nicknames both redirect to 1864: City Nicknames. The content is just one line:

   #REDIRECT [[1864: City Nicknames]]
   

6. Edit the {{LATESTCOMIC}} template. Increase the number but DO NOT change anything else, or the bot will fail on the next comic.
7. Finally, create the talk page and add the following text:

   <!--Please sign your posts with ~~~~ and don't delete this text. New comments should be added at the bottom.-->
   

How do I enter mathematical or chemical formulae?

You can use the Math markup <math>...</math>. The other known code from Wikipedia <chem>...</chem> is not supported yet. It's based on LaTeX syntax and a general overview can be found at its Wikipedia help page. Don't use it unless you actually understand what you are doing, though. If you can, you can attempt to use Unicode math characters, along with <sup>...</sup> and <sub>...</sub>, to try and create the formulas yourself.

Furthermore, never use this markup at the transcript because that math code is rendered to a picture — in the transcript we try to describe the comic image by words. A picture there wouldn't be helpful.

Please note that pages that use the Math module will not be able to load if you set your Math markup preferences to MathML, and will lead to parse errors with LaTeX rendering. The setting that should be selected is PNG images.

One or two spaces after a period? And what about newlines?

Two or more spaces are always rendered as only one, so multiple consecutive spaces can only be seen in the editor. This means it's usually best to only use one space after a period. Furthermore, a single newline is also just rendered as a space, as two newlines are required to form a paragraph. If you want to force a newline without space in between the lines, use <br> at the end of a sentence.